•Regular quizzes on the readings (If you are absent the day a quiz is given, you may take it late, but for only half credit.)
•Mormon literary events–you will attend one event besides the AML conference and write up a short response essay. These events may be author readings, LDS films (such as Nobody Knows: The Untold Story of Black Mormons or specifically LDS dance/music concerts or an LDS play.
Participate in a group Presentation
•Final Project
Interview with modern Mormon author/artist
Book report of an extra text
Essay on one of the themes we discussed
Review of a Mormon film
NOTE: I have not scheduled all of the guest speakers. I’m working on it!
Opening hymns throughout the semester. You and a partner will be assigned to BRIEFLY introduce a hymn on one day during class.
Note that many of these have lyrics by Mormon poets–pioneer poets and modern ones.
O Savior Thou Who Wear’st a Crown
That Easter Morn
Love One Another
Help Me Teach with Inspiration
Where Can I Turn for Peace
In Fasting We Approach Thee
I Am a Child of God
Come, Come Ye Saints
A Poor Wayfaring Man
An Angel From on High
If You Could Hie to Kolob
Our Savior’s Love
The Morning Breaks
As Sisters in Zion
Ye Elders of Israel
Far, Far Away
Does the Journey seem Long
O My Father
Schedule
Unit One: Pre-Earth and Earth
Tuesday Jan. 7: Get acquainted. Discussion of the history of Mormon literature. We will read the King Follett Discourse in class and will discuss some philosophers’ discussions of pre-Mortal life (Augustine, Sam Sheppard & Givens). For next class, listen to the soundtrack of Saturday’s Warrior on you-tube. Prepare for the sing-a-long. You would do well to start Added Upon.
Jan. 9: Saturday’s Warrior sing-a-long. For next class, read Added Upon.
Jan 11: Quiz on King Follett Discourse and on Added Upon. Discuss “The Pearl” and Added Upon. For next time, read Steven Peck’s essay in Common Ground/Different Opinions
Jan. 14: Guest will be Steven Peck, who didn’t quite finish high school, but did eventually get a PhD in biology. He is a professor of biology as well as a poet, fiction writer, and environmentalist. For next time, Read Church statement on race and priesthood plus JS presidential platform as well as “Eliza Partridge Lyman’s journal and Jane James’s life story.
Jan. 16: Guest speaker: Darius Gray. For next time, read One More River to Cross
Jan 21st: Quiz. Discuss black LDS pioneer history. For next time, “The Garden” in Dispensation. Discussion of South Africa in LDS history + a little time with a documentary. For next time, read the Wright/Stapley article on women’s ritual healing (supplement) and “Clothing Esther” in Dispensation.
Unit 2: Male and Female
Jan. 23:, Wright/Stapley article on women’s ritual healing https://byustudies.byu.edu/PDFLibrary/28.2HarrellTheDevelopment-c01455fa-7d63-4dc4-8ea5-1be9c1422afc.pdf and “Clothing Esther” in Dispensation. Gender issues.
Jan. 28: Quiz. Discuss gender issues. Guest: Maxine Hanks. For next time: George Handley’s essays in supplement and his “Heaven and Earth” essay in Common Ground, Different Opinions.
Jan. 30: Guest: George Handley–Chair of the Dept. of Humanities, Environmentalist
For next time, read the Book of Moses. Begin reading The God who Weeps
Feb. 4: Discussion of the Book of Moses. For next time, read Kristine Haglund’s “For Luisa” in CGDO.
Feb. 6: Discussion of Haglund’s essay. Read the Melissa Dalton-Bradford essays in the supplement. Keep reading The God Who Weeps.
Feb 11: Guest speaker: Melissa Dalton-Bradford. Finish The God who Weeps.
Feb. 13: Quiz. Discussion of The God who Weeps. For next time, read “Gadianton” in Stewart’s Saints on Stage
Feb. 18: NO CLASS
Feb. 20: Guest speaker: Eric Samueulsen. For next time, read the short version of “Ender’s Game” and begin the novel.
UNIT: War and Peace
Feb. 25th: Quiz. Discussion of Scott Card’s work. For next time, read Book of Mormon scriptures as assigned, and Bruce Young’s essay in CGDO.
Feb. 27th: Guest speaker: Bruce Young. Continue reading Ender’s Game. We discuss it next time.
March 4: Quiz. Discussion of the novel version of EG
March 6: Film of EG. (Party?) For next time, read Huebener
March 11: Guest speakers Tom Rogers and Alan Keele speaking about Huebener . For next time, read Thayer’s “The Clinic”
March 13: Quiz. Guest speaker: Douglas Thayer
March 18: PTSD panel. (Chaplain, Iraq veteran, victim of another kind of trauma) For next time: “Letters to a Young Mormon”—first six letters
March 20: Discussion of first six letters. Read the rest of the book for next time.
March 25: Quiz. Discussion of “Letters to a Young Mormon.”
March 27: Divide into groups for group projects. For next time, read Jack Harrell’s “Calling and Election”, Levi Peterson’s “Brothers” in Dispensation and Jonathan Penny’s “Savior, Psalms, Sighs” essay in the supplement.
April 1: Quiz. Discussion of “Calling and Election”, “Brothers”, and the Penny essay
April 3: Meet in class for a hymn, then disperse into workshop groups
April 8: Discussion of General Conference as literature. Last twenty minutes will be workshop groups.
April 10: Class presentations
April 15: Class presentations (last day of class)
Final Paper Due on the day of the final
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In